The Irregulars games night last night featured our first Star Wars game using the Star Wars Miniatures Battle figures and a modification of the Warhammer 40,000 2nd edition rules. The scenario was ad hoc and consisted of the Separatists holding four terrain features, one of which was the entrance to an underground droid manufacturing factory. The Republican forces had to occupy the terrain for a full turn looking for an entrance before they were told whether they were in the right place.
The Separatists were deployed by me as the umpire, occupying the four key terrain features, but with a secret ability to bring reserves on in ambush. They could appear from any terrain feature so long as they did not end up within 4″ of an enemy figure. The Republicans were allowed to come on double their move from anywhere on the board and operate as if they had made a single move. This simulated their element of surprise.
Forces consisted of:
Republicans: Yoda, Obi Wan Kenobi, 4 Wookies, a Clone Commander, a Veteran Clone squad and a standard Clone squad.
Separatists: General Grievous, Jango Fett, Dam Skak (a Sith Acolyte), 3 units of Droids, 1 unit of Super Battle Droids, a squad of Neimoidians and 2 Separatist Commandos.
The Clone forces turn up behind the Battle Droids guarding the northern outpost.
“Quiet day today, sarge. Say… did you hear something?”
While the Wookies and the Jedi appear on the Eastern side. Yoda and Obi Wan charge straight into melee with a droid squad.
The Wookies burst around the corner and fire a burst at the Neimoidians on the Eastern bunker, killing one. It isn’t easy shooting when you get your finger hair caught in the trigger.
Obi Wan and Yoda scythe through some battle Droids on the South-Eastern generator.
“Roger Roger!” The Battle Droids take 2 hits from the Clone fire and failing their morale test run for the nearest cover.
“Uh-Oh! Umm, Yoda, I could do with some help here.”
“Busy I am. Your own s***, you must sort”
General Grievous, Dam Skak and the Super Battle Droids spring their ambush, with Obi Wan firmly in their sights!
The Wookies charge the Neimoidians and remove their least important limbs. Yoda leaps onto the bunker to check it for the underground entrance.
Greivous and Skak teach Obi Wan the meaning of ‘more than you can chew’. Two wounds on the Jedi and none in return. To be fair, his dice were so appalling we started calling him Obi One from then on.
The Wookies move on from the Neimoidians who are busy trying to work out why they ever bothered to leave the Zuskat farm back home. Note: a Zuskat is a sort of cross between a mushroom and a guniea pig – a real Neimoidian delicacy. On their way to the central objective they come under fire from the Super Battle Droids and their fur proves to be rather ineffective armour.
Jango Fett and the two Separatist Commandos make an ambush on the Clone squad headed for the central objective. The Clones fail their morale test and head for the cover of some convenient rocks.
The Wookies move into the assault , looking to mince up some droids, but OH NO! Wookie ones! Battle Droid NV388-94519 is a hero! “Two Wookies, no problem.” The other droids comment on the fact that the Wookies were already wounded.
A vista of the battlefield. Obi Wan inflicts two wounds on Grievous and using the force flings him 14″ away (which is quite an impressive distance when you are 1″ tall). Grievous lands hard but makes his armour save, and stands up next to Yoda…
“A Baddie you are. Your arse I will kick.”
But too late for Obi One. Another poor roll and he is on the ground. Dam Skak takes off to help out Grievous. Luckily she was in a hurry and didn’t check if Kenobi was Kaput. I’m pretty sure he’ll pull through, otherwise there is gonna be a major continuity issue that even George Lucas won’t be able to overlook.
Jango Fett rocket packs into battle only to get smashed by a Wookie. Grievous also goes down before Yoda’s lightsabre. Then the Jedi master deals to Dam Skak. All three will have their bodies whisked away by some astromech droids, because like Obi-Wan, they aren’t allowed to die yet. We need to save that for the big screen. Yoda now slashes up the Super Battle Droids, but rolls ones; “When 900 years old you reach, continuously roll high dice, you will not. Hrmmm?”
With next to no opponents left on their feet, the Republic wins. Who would have thought that the entrance to an underground droid factory would be this otherwise pointless hatch in the middle of the board?
Boy, that was fun. With a lot of dead (or incapacitated). The Warhammer 40,000 2nd edition rules worked really well, despite my rustiness with them. I last played with them in 1998, which is now much longer ago than I would like to think. I chose that edition because as far as I was concerned it was the last time that 40K was fun. Every edition since has, in my humble opinion, sucked. I think they work great for lightsabre duels, and I used the Psyker phase as a force phase. I am thinking of changing this though, and integrating force moves into the rest of the sequence (Jedi leaps, hurling objects etc). I’ll also spend a bit more time on the weapons stats. Some weapons gaining rapid fire or extra dice for shooting would be good. Otherwise, as John and Paul commented, it felt just like the movies. Wookies are big, tough and strong, Stormtroopers and Battle Droids can’t hit the side of a barn and Jedi stride around the battlefield looking for opponents worth their time (swatting aside insignificant plebs on their way).
Chris and Terry also played an Eastern Front Flames of War game, but I didn’t get around to taking any pictures, I was so absorbed in our stoush. Chris won, though, which makes me think that Terry will be out for blood next games night. He won’t like losing three on the trot…
Nate
